Clinton declares US is back in Asia

PHUKET, Thailand: US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived at a key security conference yesterday carrying a no-nonsense message that the United States is ready to re-engage with Asia after years of neglect.

Clinton, arriving from Bangkok, moved right into talks with Asian counterparts gathered for two days of international meetings to discuss the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Myanmar and a range of other regional issues.

The US secretary of state signed the seminal Treaty of Amity and Cooperation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, a commitment to peacefully resolve regional disputes that already has been signed by more than a dozen countries outside the 10-nation bloc including China.